Posted by Phil Pickering (208.46.229.101) on May 19, 2002 at 21:34:57:
Wow, that's a bizarre-looking thing at first glance. Despite one or two conflicting field marks, I think it has to be a Gray-headed Junco, though.
The head/body/tail shape and proportions are all very junco-like (although they are certainly stretched out!), there is extensive white in the outer rects (presumably eliminating female Black-chinned sparrow), the feet are sort of dark but the legs look very pale, the underparts and throat are all pretty uniform gray with no streaking, the head is slightly but noticeably darker, the bill is obviously pale and sparrow-shaped with a junco-like straight-ish culmen, and there is noticeable darkening in the lores.
On the negative side, the eye arcs seems strange, there is no discernable paler contrast to the belly or undertail coverts, and the white in the tail seems pretty limited for a junco. I can't think of what else it could be, though (assuming it's not something Mexican). Could it be a VERY dull, reduced-white-in-tail 1st-summer female Gray-headed? Time to hit the books.
Cheers,
Phil